Rhetorical Analysis: The Children's Era

The Sixth International Neo-Malthusian and Birth Control Conference was held in New York City in March of 1925. The conference was facilitated under the guidance of the American Birth Control League, and, to this day, it is considered one of the most significant international birth control conferences. It assembled scientists and physicians from all across the globe (Katz, “Margaret Sanger”), and Margaret Sanger was given the privilege of speaking at one of the conference’s ten sessions (“The Children’s Era”). She used the platform to address subjects such as child welfare, birth control, and eugenics. Entitled “The Children’s Era,” Sanger’s speech discusses the abysmal condition in which many children are living and what steps might be taken to fix the issue. Throughout her speech, Sanger utilizes anaphora and caesura several times; one of the two is used in nearly every paragraph. The beginning section of the speech, which is primarily focused on the well-being of children, is littered with examples of anaphora, specifically. Sanger uses this tool to name numerous ways in which the lives of the children at that time are poor and dismal, and this repetitious style
This speech is engaging, thought provoking, and progressive. Merely three years after the deliverance of this speech, Sanger would resign as the president of the ABCL under the notion that she was too radical for the birth control movement (“Biographical Sketch”). Although the specific ideas presented in this speech were never executed, she was able to create tremendous change towards her cause in her lifetime. We know today that the science of eugenics, particularly the form which Sanger discussed, has been debunked, but one is still able to read this work and feel the passion and faith possessed by Margaret Sanger. Margaret Sanger’s fiery devotion to her mission makes this speech an exemplary piece of